Di Angela Leather Goods to close after nearly 40 years in Greenport

The earthy, rich smell of leather will no longer greet shoppers at 140 Main St. in Greenport come Christmas Day.

Patty Carlos, owner of Di Angela Leather Goods and Accessories for nearly four decades, will shutter the shop on Dec. 24 – joining a slew of other recent closings on the popular shopping strip.

Kharmah, Linda Gerien’s boutique at 123 Main St., closed its doors after 30 years earlier this month. Tea and Tchotchkes, the gift shop known for loose tea and unique gifts, is also closing this month after eight years.

However, 140 Main St. won’t stay vacant for long. Simply Beautiful Boutique, which is owned by Ms. Carlos’ sister-in-law, and Encanto’s Crepes and Cafe, will be moving in starting in the spring. Some of Di Angela’s merchandise will still be sold in Simply Beautiful.

For Ms. Carlos, the decision to walk away after a lifetime of memories wasn’t made lightly. She took a full year to say goodbye.

“I didn’t have to do it fast; it’s not like somebody was asking for the space,” Ms. Carlos told The Suffolk Times as shoppers stopped in to say a final farewell. “So, I said, ‘I’m going to take my time.’ I’m going to say goodbye to my customers and have one more summer to try and serve them the best I can, because people count on you.”

Born in Colombia, Ms. Carlos grew up around the leather business while her father worked as a manufacturer of leather goods in a factory.

She immigrated to the United States in 1982 at age 19 and planned to spend one semester at Stony Brook University to learn English. Ms. Carlos remained in school for all four years, graduating in 1986 with a degree in psychology.

During that time, her parents made a trip to New York City, and she fell right back into the business.

“My parents came to one of the Javits Center shows to bring their merchandise and sell some things,” she said. “So one thing came after another, and to help them, I ended up doing wholesale. That’s how I started the business.”

Ms. Carlos continued doing wholesale until 1989. During that time, a lot of the stores she would sell to went out of business, leaving her with excess inventory.

She decided to open her first Di Angela leather shop in Southold in 1988. The name was a play on her first name, Angela, though she has long gone by her middle name, Patricia.

Within a few weeks, she began renting a second seasonal location in Greenport, across the street from 140 Main St.

But what she really wanted was a year-round spot. She found an empty storefront across the street from Claudio’s, at 114 Main St., where a Daniel Gale Sotheby’s realty office now stands.

Ms. Carlos worked hard to remodel the store and remained at that location until 1997.

“In Greenport, it was immediately great,” she said. “There were always people coming to Greenport, walking around. I said, ‘The store really belongs in Greenport.'”

In 1997, she and her husband, Mark, took a leap. They bought the corner building at 140 Main St., which housed Van’s Hardware at the time. They sold their home in Southold and moved with their young daughter into an apartment above the store.

They ran the hardware store for a year before liquidating its inventory and transforming the space into Di Angela. She continued to sell Colombian leather and expanded the selection to include other items like belts, clothing and shoes.

“This store was really beautiful when we opened,” she said. “I’ve been in this building since ’97, almost 30 years. It’s been very successful, very wonderful, and there’s been wonderful people. I have no complaints.”

Their daughter, Aviva Dibrov, who now lives in Canada, spent summers working in the shop — learning the business just as her mother had learned from her own father in Colombia.

Ms. Dibrov recently returned to Greenport for a final visit before the shop closed.

“It’s like my older sister,” she said of the store, looking around the shop emotionally.

Ms. Carlos said she’s not calling it retirement — just the next chapter.